svg-character-animation

name: svg-character-animation description: Animate SVG character rigs with GSAP, CSS transforms, Remotion frame control, and HyperFrames-compatible browser previews. license: MIT

SVG Character Animation

Use this skill when animating character rigs made from SVG parts.

Runtime Rules

• Animate transforms (x, y, scale, rotation) rather than layout.
• Use timelines for multi-part acting beats.
• For SVG elements, use stable pivots (svgOrigin or correctly scoped transform origins).
• In Remotion, do not let GSAP advance with requestAnimationFrame; drive a paused timeline from the current frame.

Browser Pattern

gsap.set("#arm_right", { svgOrigin: "390 310" });
const tl = gsap.timeline({ defaults: { ease: "power2.inOut" } });
tl.to("#head", { rotation: -8, duration: 0.2 })
  .to("#arm_right", { rotation: 35, duration: 0.4 }, "<");

Remotion Pattern

const frame = useCurrentFrame();
const progress = frame / durationInFrames;
timeline.progress(progress);

HyperFrames Pattern

Use HTML/SVG/GSAP components with deterministic timelines and validate via the HyperFrames CLI before final render.

Quality Checklist

• Parts stay connected at pivots during motion.
• Blinks, gaze, and mouth shapes are separate enough to read.
• Pose holds are long enough to communicate emotion.
• Frame sampling shows meaningful deltas, not frozen animation.

Sources

• GSAP core transform properties and SVG handling: https://gsap.com/docs/v3/GSAP/CorePlugins/CSS/
• GSAP timelines and sequencing: https://gsap.com/docs/v3/GSAP/Timeline/
• Remotion useCurrentFrame: https://www.remotion.dev/docs/use-current-frame